Japanese researchers developed the first wooden satellite in history, which was sent into space Tuesday as a preliminary test of the use of wood in lunar and Mars exploration.

Kyoto University and homebuilder Sumitomo Forestry (1911.T) created LignoSat, which will be launched into orbit approximately 400 kilometres (250 miles) above Earth after being flown to the ISS on a SpaceX mission.

As people investigate space living, the palm-sized LignoSat—named after the Latin word for “wood”—is entrusted with showcasing the renewable material’s cosmic possibilities.

According to astronaut Takao Doi, who has flown on the Space Shuttle and studies human space activities at Kyoto University, “We will be able to build houses, live, and work in space forever with timber, a material we can produce by ourselves.”

Doi’s team chose to create a NASA-certified wooden satellite in order to demonstrate that wood is a space-grade material, with the goal of growing trees and constructing timber dwellings on the moon and Mars in 50 years.

“In the early 1900s, aeroplanes were made of wood,” said Koji Murata, a professor of forest science at Kyoto University. “A wooden satellite should be feasible, too.”

Murata stated that because there is no oxygen or water to rot or inflame wood, it is more resilient in space than it is on Earth.

The researchers claim that a wooden satellite also lessens its final environmental impact.

Re-entering the atmosphere is necessary for decommissioned spacecraft to prevent becoming space trash. Wooden satellites simply burn up with less pollution than conventional metal ones, which produce aluminium oxide particles after re-entry, according to Doi.

“Metal satellites might be banned in the future,” stated Doi. “If we can prove our first wooden satellite works, we want to pitch it to Elon Musk’s SpaceX.”

Industrial use
The researchers conducted a 10-month trial aboard the International Space Station and discovered that honoki, a type of magnolia tree native to Japan and usually used for sword sheaths, is most suitable for spaceships.

LignoSat is constructed from honoki, a traditional Japanese craft manufactured without the use of glue or screws.

After launch, LignoSat will remain in orbit for six months, during which time its electronic components will measure how well wood withstands the harsh conditions of space, where temperatures range from -100 to 100 degrees Celsius every 45 minutes as it circles from darkness to sunlight.

Additionally, LignoSat will measure wood’s capacity to lessen the effects of space radiation on semiconductors, which makes it valuable for uses like building data centres, according to Kenji Kariya, a manager at Sumitomo Forestry Tsukuba Research Institute.

“It may seem outdated, but wood is actually cutting-edge technology as civilisation heads to the moon and Mars,” stated him. “Expansion to space could invigorate the timber industry.”